Wednesday, 29 February 2012

Last night I caught the tail end of The Richard Dimbleby Lecture with Nobel Laurette Sir Paul Nurse. It really made me think about the way we integrate science in the work place and how we can use science to engage young people. I'm no ambassador for science, in fact I suck, but revolutionary Sir Paul Nurse's lecture was so captivating and down to earth that, for the first time in weeks, I came away feeling positive about the state of the British economy. He made amazing points about how we need to fund research into new technologies, encourage citizens to have a sense of ownership over the NHS and for teachers to inspire students to be free thinkers and scientists in their own right. 'School leavers should know the difference between astronomy and astrology'.

Sir Paul touches on the new Francis Crick Institute, Kings Cross (opening in 2015) that will be a hot house for over 1,500 scientists. Sir Paul's vision is for scientists to leave the confines of the laboratories and meet with the great minds from industry, finance, media and public services to generate revenue for the economy.

There has always been a huge emphasis on training up young people in the creative industries, but in this current climate, how many jobs are there in the creative industries? As companies downsize and recruit 'jack of all' for roles that previously would require specialist isn't it worth looking into how we combine science and creativity to inspire young people? It's about realising that creative science exists - it's just your mindset. I hope you find this lecture as thought provoking as I did, here's a quote from Sir Paul: It is often in mixed up and chaotic circumstances that the most creative work is done.